Golf instruction - what is essential to the swing and what is merely style?

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Golf Instruction - What is essential to the swing and what is merely a matter of style? A page for everybody who loves golf! Here I will discuss the swing, architecture, equipment, players and the general state of the game.

At our most recent Coach Camp, I had the opportunity to learn from Kevin Duffy. Kevin is trainer to a number of the world’s best golfers and shared a few of his insightful ideas pertaining to the golf swing. Watch…

Kevin advocates so much more than I’m capable of sharing with you here today, but a few of my take aways were:

We should pressure the ground in the golf swing in a similar fashion to when we walk

When walking we start with heel contact and pressure then transitions to the mid-foot, the pinkie and finally the big toe

In the backswing the trail foot works as if we were walking backwards - big toe, pinkie, mid-foot and then heel

The downswing is the opposite of the backswing with the trail foot moving from heel, to mid-foot, to pinkie and finally big toe

This may sound complex, but stand up and give this a try right now! It always amazes me when I do this how my hips rotate beautifully coming into the “strike”.

Here is a before and after image of a student I worked with recently where all we focused on was the sequence of pressure movement under each foot. You’ll not only notice how much more his hips have rotated through impact, but also how much better the arms and club face are positioned.

Give this a try the next time you head for the practice ground and let me know how things worked out.

Thanks for your readership and support in 2018! I can promise more of the same quality of information for 2019. Have a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and may you be blessed in the New Year. Cheers!

The loft on the clubface at impact is largely responsible for the launch of the ball. When it comes to wedge play friction also plays a significant role in determining the launch angle, but the purpose of this article is to share an idea to help you improve the loft you deliver to the ball at impact.

Most of us will either hit the ball overly high or too low. This video illustrates a simple drill to get you to feel what you need to feel in order to grasp what is required to deliver either more, or less, loft.

For the high ball hitters:

Using a pitching wedge get set up with a narrow stance

Position the ball off the tip of your front foot

Feel the handle or butt of the club travel a long way forward into impact

It’s not easy but do all you can to hit low launchers

For the low ball hitters like me:

Stick with the PW and a narrow stance

The ball should be in line with the tip of your back foot

In the downswing you’ll feel the clubhead swinging a ton. The clubhead should feel like it outraces the hands

This will feel scoopy and that’s a good thing

Notice where my hands are just post impact in the image below - the low ball hitters need the hands less forward while the high ball hitters need to sense how much more forward they need to be…

It’s never easy making changes as they always feel so uncomfortable. Let’s get away from associating discomfort with ‘wrong’ as you work towards improvement. I know this exercise seems like it’s the opposite of what it should be, but as the task becomes more challenging (which this one is) we have no choice but to adapt.

The good news is that this drill applies directly to your long game too, so don’t be afraid to incorporate a few of these drills with those full swings too.

Thanks for checking in and I hope this helps you to enjoy your golf a little more.

Andrew Rice Golf

Andrew Rice Golf. Providing golf instruction for all levels of golfers. Here you will find advice on golf instruction, golf course management and golf tips. Andrew Rice Golf is located at the Westin Savannah Harbor Resort and Golf Club. Three-Day Golf School information may also be found here.